Archive for October, 2009

LAS VEGAS – The doctor being investigated in Michael Jackson’s death told a court he can’t afford to pay $13,000 in child support and other debts because he was forced to close his medical practice after physical threats against him and his staff. A family court in Las Vegas set a Nov. 16 hearing to consider a recommendation that Dr. Conrad Murray be arrested for not appearing in court this month to explain the unpaid support. Murray’s lawyer Chris Aaron objected, saying in court documents the 56-year-old doctor didn’t receive notice of the hearing. More…

Florida – Middle school students on a bus got the giggles. But the man they were laughing at failed to see the humor – or the bus, apparently. Ron Martin, 29, was arrested on a charge of drunken driving after authorities and witnesses say he rammed a riding lawmower into the back of the stopped school bus. The crash caused the mower to tip, Martin and his riding companion to fall off, and the kids who witnessed it all to commence chuckling. The students’ reaction prompted an enraged Martin to mount an unsuccessful attempt to board the bus. More…

SANFATUCCHIO, Italy – A Romanian caregiver to the elderly woman living in the Italian village of Sanfatucchio baked “a special cake” to take to relatives, and put it in the refrigerator until she was ready to go, Italian news agency ANSA reported. The hungry son of the old woman came in and opened the fridge. Seeing the cake, he proceeded to slice off a huge piece only to find a yummy filling of bracelets, necklaces, earrings and other jewels belonging to his mother. The caregiver lost her job. More…

Tanzania – Former army officer Anton Turner, 38, was helping with the filming of an episode of the CBBC series Serious Explorers in Tanzania yesterday when the attack happened. The program was tracing the footsteps of the explorer David Livingstone. A BBC spokeswoman said: “We understand at this stage that he was charged by an elephant and was mortally injured.” A doctor was travelling with the expedition and treated Mr Turner at the scene, but it was understood he died shortly after the incident. More…

Washington DC – Democrats want you to know that your McDonald’s Angus Burger meal has about 1,500 calories — before you buy and burp. Buried deep in the House health care bill is a provision requiring fast-food chains and vending machine owners to notify customers of calorie counts — by conspicuously posting nutritional information on menus or machines. A vending machine operator shall provide a sign in close proximity to each article of food or the selection button that includes similar data. More…

It has suction cups instead of hands, two sets of tank-tracks instead of feet, and is strong enough to carry an adult up a steep flight of stairs. Meet your grandmother’s new live-in helper: a robot built by an American company that has already pioneered robot vacuum cleaners and robot bomb-diffusers – 2,000 of which are on duty in Iraq and Afghanistan. The robots will be able to dispense pills, act as stair-climbing wheelchairs, monitor vital signs, provide live video monitoring, and call for an ambulance in case of an emergency. More…

New Jersey – A man who identified himself as an official with New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine’s re-election campaign was arrested last night after cops found found ecstasy tablets wrapped and ready to be sold in his car, police said. Jason Shih, 25, was pulled over by East Rutherford cops because he was talking on his cell phone. The man who identified himself as an official with New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine’s re-election campaign was arrested. A Corzine spokeswoman said that the campaign doesn’t know who he is. More…

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Florida – A Florida Fish and Wildlife officer’s attempt to use a 5-foot live alligator during show and tell at Breakfast Point Academy ended with the critter on the loose in the woods near Pier Park. The officer, Dave Brady, captured the animal in the wild and then brought the gator, with tape around its mouth, to his daughter’s class. Officers routinely bring alligators and other animals to classrooms for show and tell. More…

UK – Security guards armed with torches and chicken wire are keeping 24-hour watch to stop hedgehogs hiding in a bonfire at one of the country’s largest fireworks displays. The tactic at the Three Counties Showground in Malvern, Worcestershire, is part of a campaign to raise awareness of the danger bonfires pose to hedgehogs. More…

GRAND RAPIDS, Michigan – Wal-Mart and two other top retailers said they are suspending business with a large southwestern Michigan blueberry grower after investigators found children as young as 6 working in the grower’s fields. Wal-Mart, Kroger and Meijer said pending further information, they have stopped buying products from Adkin Blue Ribbon Blueberry Co. near South Haven. Adkin general manager Tony Marr said the company has a strictly enforced written policy prohibiting young children from working in its fields. More…

NEW YORK – A devout Muslim woman told police she slashed her husband’s neck with a kitchen knife as he slept because he forced her to eat pork, wear short skirts and drink alcohol in violation of her religious beliefs. Rabia Sarwar, 37, pleaded not guilty to attempted murder and was freed on $25,000 bail. “He made me do so many things that are against Islam,” she wrote in a statement to police. “I did all that just to make him happy but inside me there was a war.” More…

Michigan – A Saginaw man stuck his finger where he shouldn’t have. Lucky for him, help wasn’t far away. Victor Harris was pouring a fuel additive into his Lincoln Navigator at 7-Eleven when a piece of paper fell into the gas tank, said Ken Santa, St. Mary’s of Michigan hospital spokesman. Harris tried to fish the paper out but his index finger became stuck in the gas tank. Patrons summoned Saginaw firefighters, and after four hours, crews cut out a 4-foot section of the gas pipe, Santa said. More…

SAN JOSE, California – Kids will be kids, but one cranky 2-year-old was acting too much his age for a Southwest Airlines flight crew who kicked him off a plane getting ready to leave for San Jose. Pamela Root says she was confident her son Adam’s screams of “Go! Plane! Go!” and “I want Daddy!” would subside once the plane took off in Amarillo, Texas. But she says the plane taxied back to the gate and the pair was escorted off. More…

Washington DC – A crew member aboard a U.S. Navy ship accidentally fired a machine gun into the Polish port city of Gdynia while cleaning the weapon, Navy officials said. Three rounds were fired from an M240 machine gun into the town but no injuries or damage were reported. The gun, aboard the USS Ramage, a Navy destroyer, is used to defend the ship in close combat. Navy officials said a crew member was cleaning the weapon when it accidentally discharged. More…

California – Nadya Suleman, the La Habra resident of in-vitro-octuplet-birthing fame, has found herself back in the news today – both for her pregnant nun Halloween costume and for reports that she may be dating fellow baby-making celeb Jon Gosselin. In photos by Splash, a celebrity news and photo agency, Suleman appears wearing a pregnant nun costume surrounded by her 14 children dressed as small, red demons for Halloween. More…